Did playing overseas help some Ducks?

Jan. 10, 2013

Updated Aug. 21, 2013 1:17 p.m.

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Hampus Lindholm, left, Ryan Lasch, Bobby Ryan chat between drills during a voluntary preseason practice session before the NHL lockout. Ryan played for Mora IK in Sweden for a few weeks during the lockout. JOSHUA SUDOCK, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Hampus Lindholm, left, Ryan Lasch, Bobby Ryan chat between drills during a voluntary preseason practice session before the NHL lockout. Ryan played for Mora IK in Sweden for a few weeks during the lockout. JOSHUA SUDOCK, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

ANAHEIM – To play or not to play. That was one lockout question.

A few Ducks jumped at the chance to head overseas to play hockey while others opted to wait and see if the NHL and players' union would find a solution to end their labor strife and put the regular season in motion.

But some players, such as the Ducks' Bobby Ryan, had to change their mind when it was clear a new agreement would come much later than sooner. And there were those who had no plans to uproot their lives in order to compete on the ice.

Now the question is whether playing during the lockout gave those an advantage over the ones who didn't or wouldn't as a 48-game blitz of an NHL season starts in eight days following a week-long training camp.

Teemu Selanne saw a clear difference when nearly a full complement of Ducks gathered Thursday at Honda Center for another informal workout.

"For sure, it's going to be an advantage," said Selanne, who remained in Orange County. "If you look, even guys like (Andrew) Cogliano, he's flying out there. And he doesn't get tired like the rest of us.

"I'm sure it's going to be a big advantage right away."

Selanne recalled that it took him six or seven games after his four-month sabbatical from the Ducks after their 2007 Stanley Cup victory "to get the legs back and the tempo and stuff."

Players such as Ryan and Matt Beleskey shouldn't have that problem. Ryan initially remained stateside but changed his mind and played with Mora IK of the Swedish second-division Allsvenskan league.

"The little things like timing and issues with the puck and things like that, they can't come by doing what we were doing every day here," Ryan said. "So I think going over there gave me a little bit of a base."

Beleskey joined the Coventry Blaze of the Elite Ice Hockey League in England. Defenseman Cam Fowler also played in Sweden while fellow blue-liner Luca Sbisa went back to his native Switzerland for action.

"There's only one way to get in game shape and that's to play games," Beleskey said. "You can work out as hard as you want but the game, it's a different situation. I got to play lot of minutes, like 30 a night. I think it helped me."

The extra time off helped defenseman Toni Lydman recover from a bum right shoulder that plagued him all last season and left knee surgery to repair torn cartilage in April.

Recovery from those injuries made playing in his native Finland a tough choice, but Lydman said he wouldn't have considered doing it even if he was already at full strength.

The 11-year veteran does see the value of those who played in various leagues, even if the quality didn't match up to the NHL.

"It doesn't matter how much you've been skating back and forth," he said. "It's different when you're going in the corners and actually having to push a guy. You get tired and it's a different level of fatigue."

Lydman then added, smiling: "Fortunately we have a lot of guys that played so they can lead the way in these first (games)."

Center Nick Bonino, who played in a second-division Italian league, wouldn't buy that he's got a leg up in terms of sharpness over teammates such as Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, who opted to stay on this continent.

Besides, those two didn't have to be the target of opposing players for a while.

"You've got so many world-class players here," Bonino said. "Getzlaf and Perry didn't go overseas but I don't think they're going to miss a step. I don't think anyone on our team will. They worked real hard while they were here.

"I guess the only thing they didn't have were guys trying to kill them. Which is kind of a pain over there."

DUCKS YOUNGSTERS

The Ducks are expected to bring their top two draft picks in 2011, right wing Rickard Rakell and goalie John Gibson, to training camp that is slated to open Sunday.

Gibson was the tournament MVP and top goalie at the world junior championship in leading the United States to a gold medal victory over Rakell and Sweden.

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